Lasting Pain
by CrystalCrisis
Summary: This is the story of the damage that Ash has suffered over his travels, whilst been haunted by nightmares, can our hero and his friends help to discover the source of his pain before it devour him. Will this new strain cause a relationship to develop between Ash and Misty, or are the stuck as friends forever as they fight.
1. Home

Ash was thrashing in his sleep, his nightmares were getting worse and worse they were taking a toll on his mental strength, every night he suffered. This wasn't an uncommon situation for the young trainer to be in, at only twenty years old he had already saved the world at least three times: from MewTwo and his fascination to remove humanity, the incident on the Orange Islands involving the three birds or even that last incident in Hoenn. At twenty Ash had done more and suffered more than most people ever would.

Pikachu looked over at the restless form of his friend, whilst he couldn't comprehend what exactly was going on he knew it was bad and he had to help the best way he knew how "pikaaa chuuu" and the whole room filled with an intense yellow-blue light as electricity arced from the small rodents cheeks over to Ash.

With a scream Ash was awake and alert, if not slightly on edge. "Ah what was that?" as sweat dripped down his face and onto his cold torso.

"pika pika chu" the Pokemon responded, whilst miming Ash's thrashing.

"Oh. Sorry bout that pal, they seem to be getting worse lately, I just wish I knew why they were happening" despondently Ash looked at the ground, whilst tears welled in his eyes he refused to be defeated by this, it was only another battle after all. "Anyway, as we're up, we may as well make a move from here" looking around the small room in the Pokemon Centre "Pallet isn't far away, and we really should be getting home by now".

As Ash traveled along the road to the town of Pallet he knew that his mother and the world renowned Pokemon professor, Samuel Oak, would be extremely pleased to see him, this helped to lift his spirits as a small, almost untraceable, smile crept across his face. Of course there were still people he had to see now that he was back in Kanto, this was of course Misty and Brock, his two closest friends and whilst they had all gone their separate ways a few years back they still remained close. Or at least he hoped, this uncertainty had been with our destiny struck hero for a long time now. Looking up from the road Ash found himself looking straight at his mom's front door, had he really walked ten miles already, maybe that's what pondering the reactions if your loved ones does, it makes time fly.

Knock, knock, knock.

"Ash? Ash! You're home, it's really you" his mother choked out as she saw her son for the first time in over a year.

"yeah, of course it's me, I said I'd be back today, and well, here I am"

Beaming Delia Ketchum pulled her son into a tight hug and exclaimed "you haven't been eating, you feel like a rake. Are you okay honey?" and it was true, Ash thought, he probably hadn't been eating, his appetite just didn't seem to exist. But he knew that wasn't good enough, he couldn't have his mother worrying anymore than she already did.

Smiling "we've just been working really hard haven't we Pikachu?"

"Pika pika"

"and it to mention how hot it's been, I've just sweated away"

"well, if that's the case I'll have to cook up a fine dinner tonight, no more hard work for a while" Delia was well aware of what her son was capable of, and what he had been through, and even though she knew he had been lying to her there, she understood Ash must have had a good reason. She frowned inwardly, this could be a long few weeks. "anyway professor Oak said he wanted to see you as soon as you returned, so off you pip" and without a second breath Ash and Pikachu were outside again.

The trip to Professor Oak's lab took no more than five minutes, and as the sun was now clearly in the sky and the birds were chirping away Ash allowed himself to feel a brief moment of content.

Hundreds of miles away Misty sat looking at her phone, the name on the screen was a Ketchum, but not Ash, no it was his mother, immediately Misty's heart skipped a beat, why would Ash's mother be riding me, oh god has something happened to Ash, no that was silly.

"Hello, Misty speaking."

"Hallo Misty, it's Delia, I wondered if you had a moment to talk? "

" yes of course" Misty had a lot of time on her hands at the moment as her Gym was closed for renovations "what can I help you with"

"Well... Um... It's Ash" again the young girls heart skipped a beat (why do I keep feeling like this, Misty thought inwardly, sure she was friends with Ash, but this sheer dread seemed to be something new) "well it's just that he's back home and I was wondering if you could round up Brock and come over, I know it's..."

"yes" what no Misty thought, why was she acting so rashly? "that is to say... Um yes I'll find Brock and we'll come, I assume you're throwing him a party?"

"thank you misty, we'll see you soon..." and the line went dead. How odd thought Misty, she didn't answer, I wonder if something did happen, pondering what might be the case she resolved to ring Brock later that evening and head down to Pallet on the next available train.

Although Ash was tired from waking up before dawn, he knew that sleep would evade him for a large part of this evening, even after the huge meal his mother had cooked for him, the prospect of being at the whim of his own twisted imagination was not something he was looking forward to. Sighing, Ash resolved that he try and stay awake for as long as possible, to see if he could outwit whatever his own traitorous mind threw at him.

**the small mouse uttered softly dragging Ash out of the trance he seemed to have placed himself in, just thinking. **

**As the Pokemon moved closer and curled up into a ball beside Ash on his bed Swiveling around on his bed the trainer laid back and stared at the ceiling.**


	2. Reunion

The night had been kind to Ash, he had managed to fall asleep quickly, despite his plan, and then sleep like a log this was a change, yet something didn't feel right as he arose to birds chirping outside, why, after months of nightmares had they just stopped, was this a good thing, or were things only going to get worse. Shaking his head he stood up and splashed some cold water on his face, a face that seemed unfamiliar.

Misty and Brock sat facing one another on the train to Pallet from Pewter city, whilst this short trip would only take a few hours one of the travelers was already showing signs of lethargy; Misty had spent most of the previous night organising the trip from Cerulean to Pallet, and it was showing, there were dark bags hanging under her eyes and her body was slumped against the train's window. As the train rocketed towards the small town, Misty couldn't help but wonder whether something was seriously wrong with Ash, or whether it was just his mother getting concerned over little things, as she was well known for doing, hell thought Misty, she was still telling him to change his "you know what's" at the age of 15.

"Don't worry Misty" said Brock suddenly, causing the red headed water trainer to look up "I'm sure Ash is fine and his Mother just wants him to have some company for a while, you know he's been travelling alone for a fair amount of time"

This was true, Misty thought, Ash had been travelling alone for quite an extended period, even their phone calls had been getting less and less frequent, was Ash pulling away from her? Pssh, that was a silly thing to think, how could he be pulling away, they were only friends after all, nothing else.

"Yeah, I'm sure you're right, but what if…" "Well, if something is wrong, then we do what all good friends do, we'll drag him up out of the dirt and make sure that he's okay" and with a nod Misty knew that that was that, they would help Ash if there was something wrong, and if not, they would have a good time.

Ash, after some deliberation decided that it would be a good idea to go and visit his Pokemon at Professor Oak's laboratory, he hadn't seen many of them for months, and wondered whether the reception he was to receive would be a joyous one, or would the separation from his poke-pals cause friction. The walk to the lab wasn't far, and Ash managed it in twenty minutes. The good Professor Oak opened the door.

"Ah Ash, it's good to see you again" extending his hand as a way of a greeting, the grey haired professor looked disheveled, as though he had been up all night.

"Is everything alright Professor?" Ash asked, wanting to make sure that the old man was okay, this man had been like a father to him.

"Oh yes, everything's fine Ash, just a rather late night tending to an ill Pokemon" The older gentleman returned "everything should be okay. Anyway I suppose you want to see your Pokemon?"

"Yes, please!" As Ash stood in one of the many fields that the Professor used and owned for his research Ash couldn't help but wonder if anything ever changed in this small town, each time he returned from a journey that took him around the world, this place seemed to stay a constant, and for Ash, that was a good thing.

It took him nearly half the day to speak to, play with and reassure his Pokemon, many had just been happy to see their master, some had been upset due to his absence, but none seemed to troubled. It would easily be past lunch by the time Ash returned home, if Ash could eat that is. During the walk home Ash thought about what his next move would, whilst he didn't have any intentions to move from the small sleepy village any time soon, he'd seen his fair share of action to last him a decade, he couldn't help but feel that at some point danger would rear it's head.

Misty and Brock had arrived in the small town of Pallet, it was a beautiful day and the birds were chirping. As the pair walked along the main track that would lead them to Ash's house, Misty still couldn't shake the feeling that something was going to be seriously wrong with her friend when they met their destination. Shaking her head she resolved to just enjoy the light breeze and summer sun, it was an exceptional day after all.

As Ash was laying in bed upstairs, Delia knew that she had to prepare for the impending visitors, has she done the right thing she thought to herself. Yes, yes she had, something was wrong with Ash, and she had to find out what, he would never tell her she knew that much, but if there was someone he was going to tell it was going to be Misty and Brock, they were his best friends after all. I just hope their distance hasn't damaged their friendship, thinking about Ash and Misty. I wonder if they'll act like they used to, that would be funny to see, and with a small chuckle Delia returned to the house work. There was only a brief period before the front door of the Ketchum residence was being knocked by Misty and Brock, as Delia opened the door she knew that her time to talk to the pair was limited so she stepped outside.

"Hey Misty, Brock, how have you been?" starting with the pleasantries.

"Fine, thank you" the pair responded, then almost immediately

"How's Ash?" Misty blurted her hand immediately went to cover her face. Wow, smooth Mist, the young red haired trainer thought to herself.

"Oh, well, I don't know, there just seems to be something off at the moment, I was hoping that you two could talk to him for me. I know he won't open up, he doesn't want to hurt me." And with a small sigh, she opened the door, and the trio entered. "Ash, can you come downstairs for a minute, there's someone here to see you." Delia shouted from the base of the stairs.

Huh, thought Ash, that's odd, wasn't expecting anyone, "Who do you think it is Pikachu?" he said turning to the small mouse "Pika pika?" was the response "Well that's true, you aren't a mind reader. I suppose I had better go and look" and the raven-haired trainer lifted himself off of the bed and proceeded to head downstairs. Misty could feel her heart pounding through her chest; "stop that" she thought to herself, it's only Ash, you've literally spent years with him, you shouldn't be so anxious, but as she saw Ash step foot off of the last step the anxiety had lifted.

"Well at least he's still in one peace" she thought to herself, waiting for her friends reaction. To say that Ash was shocked when he saw the two faces of Brock and Misty at the bottom of his stairs would be an understatement.

"Wha… What are you two doing here?" Ash asked, whilst shooting his mother an inquisitive look.

"Well, we heard you were back and wanted to say hi." Brock responded, before Misty or Delia could get a word in. So, thought Misty, Brock is going to lie to Ash, he obviously thinks somethings wrong, and as she looked over at her friend there did seem to be something off, he seemed sad, she quietly thought to herself.

"Oh, well, yeah, I got back yesterday, I meant to ring… But it must have slipped my mind" why are they here, I mean I'm happy to see them, but… no it just caught me off guard - Ash reassured himself, of course you're happy to see them, and with all his will, he pulled a massive grin and turned back to his friends "don't take it too personally, I've had a few things to do."

There was an obvious tension in the air, everyone could feel it, this wasn't how it was supposed to be, he thought, we're friends, I expected that when I got around to seeing them I would at least be happy, what's wrong with me? The tension in the air seemed to ease over the next few hours, Misty and Brock said hello to Pikachu and then the newly reunited trio went back down to the Professor's lab to see if he and Gary would like to have dinner at Ash's.

The invitation was gratefully accepted. Conversation was flowing naturally around the dinner table, Brock was helping Ash's Mom in the kitchen whilst the remaining four sat and spoke. Pikachu was eyeing up a bottle of ketchup that had been placed upon the table, but couldn't quite reach without everyone noticing.

"So Ash" Professor Oak piped up "have you any plans on what you're going to do now that you're back in Pallet, the local tournaments don't start for another few months.

Ash was unsure what he was going to say, he had given it some thought, but the only answer that sounded reasonable was waiting it and seeing what happened "Well, I think I'll get some training time in, and then go and challenge some of Kanto's gym leaders again and then take part in the League again." Ash lied to the table. Misty looked over at Ash, he's lying, I can tell that, but why? The redhead thought to herself, was there something he was hiding. No, that can't be it, there must be something else, I need to get him on his own, I'm going to get to the bottom of this. Misty's thought train was broken by Gary "Well, I think that's a good idea Ashy-boy, I mean, you can't not be training for a long time, if I wasn't so busy helping Gramps, I'd train with you"

"Gary's right Ash" Professor Oak chimed in "I think that that's a good idea".

As Brock and Delia say back down the conversation naturally progressed to what the other members of the party were doing, Brock was the first to pitch in. "Well, I'm actually helping Nurse Joy in Pewter City to run the Pokemon Centre" Said the former Gym leader "That's great Brock, I'm really proud of you!" replied Delia, genuinely happy that Brock had managed to find success in his chosen career. This conversation ran it's natural course until the Oaks declared that they would have to get back to the lab as they had a lot of work to finish in the morning, this left just the Ketchum's and Ash's two friends.

"Well, I had better be off to bed as well, don't stay up too late kids" said Delia, inwardly she wondered whether Misty and Brock were going to get to the problem with Ash, all she could do was silently wish.

"Well, I sure have had a lovely day, I think your Mom made the right decision calling us, what do you think Ash" Brock asked

"Yeah, I'd say so, how long do you two reckon you can stay?" Ash replied gesturing to the pair "and where is Pikachu?"

"I think I saw him run off with that ketchup" Misty responded, attempting to suppress a giggle at the sight of Pikachu holding a bottle of ketchup that was significantly bigger than him.

"I don't honestly know Ash, but I should think I can stay for a week or so, there's not much going on at the Centre to be honest"

"What about you Misty?" Ash asked his female counterpart

"Oh well, I haven't got a lot on at the moment, the Gym is closed until next week for renovations… So yeah about a week" she replied with a smile, internally she thought "however long it takes to work out what's wrong with you though, the Gym can wait"

"Well that sounds good to me, we have a lot of catching up to do" Ash responded, he meant it this time, the idea of being with Brock and Misty for a week was brilliant, maybe that would take his mind off of the nightmares, maybe he would feel better, he hoped.

"Well, I think I'll head off as well" stated Brock "Don't stay up too late, and I'll be in the spare room, I assume that you're sleeping on Ash's floor as usual Mist?"

"Yeah probably, if that's okay with you Ash?" "Yeah, of course" immediately Ash's heart sunk, why had he said yes? he knew he was running the risk of having night terrors, this couldn't end well "I mean, unless you wanna sleep in my bed and I'll crash on the sofa"

"Nah Ash, it's okay, I quite enjoy the floor" yep, there's definitely something wrong here, Ash is never this nice. She allowed a small smile to creep across her face, "I'm going to help you Ketchum, whether you like it or not".


	3. Truths

Disclaimer:- I do not own Pokemon what so ever, or the characters portrayed.

Also, this is going to be a longer chapter. Any feedback would be appreciated.

As Ash and Misty settled to sleep Ash couldn't help but feel useless, he could only hope that tonight was going to be a repeat of the previous night, and not like the last few months, he didn't need to worry his friends, that would be an awful thing to do. Grimacing, he attempted to relax, focusing on his friends breathing.

Misty fell asleep quickly, whilst her fear and confusion at her friends lying was on her mind she knew that exhaustion was not going to help the matter, falling asleep was quite simple, especially with Pikachu cuddling up to her. Unfortunately, the peace of her dreams was soon to be broken. Abruptly, Misty was pulled from her dreams, to the sound of Ash thrashing around in bed, "Oh god, what's going on, I need to stop him"

"Ash… Ash… Wake up Ash, you're going to hurt yourself" Misty pleaded, she'd never seen anyone have such violent nightmares, it was almost as if his dreams were taking on a physical manifestation "Pikachu, can you help me here" She hissed at the small electric rodent

"Pika pika" as he climbed up onto his friend and produced a small shock, just enough to pull Ash from the hell he was experiencing.

As Ash lay there, it took a while for his senses to regain full function, the dream, if you could call it that, had been the worst he had suffered, since this blight had invaded his life, and for once he could recall something from the nightmare; there was pain, great pain, that no human should ever feel. Tears formed in the trainer's eyes as he looked over to Misty, she looked petrified, had I hurt her, the thought caused Ash to feel physically sick, the idea that his problem was affecting someone he cared about was too much.

Misty was the first to speak "Ash… I… Are you okay?" silence "Please Ash, I need to know if you're okay, stop blocking me out"

Ash looked up and into her eyes "Well… No I'm not Mist, I don't know what's wrong." Tears were now streaming down the young man's face "I didn't…" he choked "I didn't hurt you Misty? Did I?"

"No, you didn't" her eyes started to fill with tears also "he doesn't care about himself, typical Ash, I need to get him to talk, he needs us" thought Misty. After taking a few short breaths, Misty moved over to Ash's bed and sat next to him "Ash, please tell me what's wrong, I'm here to help"

Ash looked up at her, he knew he was defeated, there was no way that to fight her, Misty would win every time, sighing "I… I honestly don't know, it started before the last League I entered, there was a day that I couldn't remember, and then I woke up in bed and well, those started" Misty could hear the pain in her friends voice

"But, why didn't you tell anyone? You know we're all here for you, right?"

Ash's response was just as expected "I didn't want to worry you, any of you, I thought I would be fine in time, but… It's draining me, I literally can't function as a human. I don't know what to do." Ash lapsed into silence, he had already said more than he wanted to. Misty didn't reply verbally, she simply put her arms around Ash and hugged him, it was enough, Ash knew that she meant what she had said.

"Well, I suppose we should try and get back to sleep, there's still a few hours until sunrise." Misty didn't move, her embrace tightened

"Ash, we're getting you through this, we're going to find out what happened. I promise you." Ash didn't even think about asking his friend to move, he felt something he hadn't felt in months, he felt safe, closing his eyes and sighing he closed his eyes and whispered "thank you".

Brock had heard most of the exchange from the next room, he sighed, at least he had a good idea of what was going to be needed to help Ash, but the first task would be getting Ash to fully explain to him what was going through his brain, only then could he help his friend. He sensed an adventure coming on, but he knew he would have to make sacrifices of his own, they would be worth it of course.

Delia woke early the next morning, as she crept across the landing she peered into Ash's room, "strange" she thought to herself "Misty doesn't seem to be on the floor… Ohhhhh" she noticed the mixture of yellow, red and black at the top of Ash's bed, "heh, they must have had a decent talk" she hadn't heard Ash and Misty's conversation from hours before, due to the distance between rooms "I wonder if Misty managed to find out what's wrong?" Delia wasn't too concerned about finding her son in bed with Misty, they had been friends for ten years, and deep down obviously had feelings for one another, their sheer embarrassment would prevent them from doing anything serious, she was certain of that.

Ash awoke just after nine, as he opened his eyes the memories of the previous evening came flooding back, they did nothing to help his mood, he felt drained, the only solace seemed to be that of the the bear hug that Misty had attached herself to him with, even as she slept she refused to let him go, a smile nearly crossed Ash's face before the reality of the situation re-entered his mind, he was fairly certain that Brock would've been able to hear the pair's exchange, but would his Mother, he didn't want this, he just wanted to go back to what it was like before that night. If only he could remember what had happened.

"Hey, Mist" Ash whispered quietly "you're on my arm, can I have it back please?" Misty had begun to stir and was slowly waking up "Yeah, I think you can" a small smile crept over her face

"I could get used to waking up next to Ash" Misty thought "no that's not something you should be thinking about right now, first I need to help him." Whilst this was being said neither party moved, they just lay there staring into each other's eyes. As Misty slowly leaned forward to allow Ash to remove his arm, the raven-haired boy noticed just how much Misty had grown up over the last few years, obviously, this wasn't the first time he had seen her since the first time he left for the Hoenn region, they had spent a fair amount of time talking via video call, or attending one another's birthdays, but this was the first time he had seen her in a more private setting. She was beautiful, and he couldn't deny that.

"Pika pikaaaa chuuu "

"What's that buddy?" Ash responded, Pikachu didn't answer straight away, instead he just glanced at Misty then to Ash and grinned,

"What exactly are you implying Pikachu?"

"Pika chu pika" (nothing, I just hope you were comfortable last night)

"Oh come on Pikachu, it's Misty, she's just my friend" the small mouse looked at him, and with an incredulous grin got up and left. Ash couldn't believe Pikachu, he thought that people were over teasing him about Misty "I mean, they aren't right, are they?" he asked uncertainly "No, it's just that she was there for me last night, when I needed her most, that's all it is" barely audibly.

Misty crossed the Ketchum's landing and headed into the bathroom, "Well, that was an interesting night" she thought to herself "But I've got to help him, I can't let this continue" she knew the first course of action, it was to tell his Mother, but she also knew that Ash probably wouldn't speak to her."No, it's the right thing to do, he's going to need all the help he can."

Leaving the bathroom Misty headed back towards Ash's room, she needed her day clothes after all, couldn't try and save her best friend from some invisible evil in her pajamas. As she entered Ash's room he was just finishing changing, Misty noticed again what Delia had said about Ash not eating, he did look, well scrawny, this was yet another cause for concern.

"Ohh, sorry, I didn't realise that you were changing in here"

"It's fine, we've seen each other in worse states" Ash responded with a small smile, he wasn't just referring to the traumatic night they had both just experienced.

"Yeah… I suppose we have. So Ash, are you going to tell your Mom about the nightmares, or am I going to have to?" Misty's tone changed dramatically, she knew that being hard on Ash was sometimes the only way to get things moving, he was overly arrogant at times, now was not a reasonable time for this to be the case.

"I don't suppose I have much choice, do I?"

"No, not really, but I'm here with you one hundred percent, it'll probably be easier to do it sooner or later though."

"Okay, I'll go and do it now." Ash moved towards his door "You… ummm… didn't bring that mallet of your's did you?" feigning fear Ash quickly scurried away.

Brock was already downstairs, seeing as it was already half-nine, by the time Ash arrived in the kitchen. The aspiring trainer knew that he needed to tell both his Mother and his friend the truth about what had been going on, unfortunately for Ash it was his Mom who was the first to speak

"Morning Honey, I trust you and Misty had a nice sleep" mischievous smirk across her face, Ash knew exactly what she was implying

"What? No, nothing like that happened, Misty slept on the floor, and I stayed in bed" Ash's face resembled a beetroot at this moment in time

"That's funny dear, because when I checked on you this morning, I couldn't help but notice that Misty was, well, attached to you, is there something you want to tell us Ash?" Delia was only trying to wind her Son up, she didn't expect what came next.

"Yeah, I suppose I better had tell you…" And with that Ash explained everything, about the nightmares, why he wasn't eating, and of course why Misty was in his bed that morning. Before Ash could finish, his Mother had wrapped her arms around him and pulled him in for a tight hug

"Well, it sounds like" She paused for a moment to gather her words, this was painful to hear, but she knew that Ash was in safe hands "like, Misty, and I'm sure Brock, and me of course, will help you in whatever way possible." She was slightly mad that he hadn't told her of course, then again, he always has been over confident. "Of course, you're going to have to see the doctor about this, there's no way you're not seeing someone professionally Ash."

Ash hadn't thought about this, and if he was honest, the idea repulsed him, some psychologist poking around in his subconscious with a psychic type Pokemon made Ash feel on edge, he did also know that resistance would be futile, as he was certain if his Mom didn't drag him to a shrink then Misty would, and he couldn't quite figure out which of those two outcomes was worse.

"Okay, I'll go" This shocked everyone in the room, even Pikachu who was sitting on one of the kitchen counters "But not today, today Misty, Brock and I need to go to make the most of this weather, besides, the walk to Viridian City would take us a few days as is"

"Oh, don't be silly Ash, you won't have to walk into the city, I'll ring for a doctor to come here" Delia responded matter of factly, this did nothing to alleviate the anxiety that Ash was feeling.

Misty and Brock had only intended to stop in Pallet for a week, and then to go back to their rather simple and understandable lives; this plan was short lived. The trio were sitting around Ash's coffee table, a map of the local regions displayed on the polished wood and three very confused people sat staring at it intently.

"Well…" Started Misty "I think we should go back to the Orange Islands, after all, that was the first time that Ash saved us all, maybe that's got something to do with this." Misty was certain that, at least one of the reasons that Ash was being tormented in his sleep was due to the number of times he had selflessly attempted to sacrifice himself in order to save the world. Whilst Ash and Brock weren't so certain about this, they couldn't ignore the possibility, was someone doing this to Ash as punishment for saving the world?

"I think it might be a lead, but then again, I don't know what I think to be honest" Ash responded "I like the idea of going to see that talking Slowking again, there's a possibility he's able to figure something out"

"Well then, it's sorted, we'll head to the Orange Islands as soon as we can, but I don't think blimps are the choice of travel anymore" Brock said, remembering the stories that Ash and Misty had told him after they left him in the care of Professor Ivy "Which means we're probably going to have to walk, and then use our pokemon to get there, shouldn't take more than a week I don't think."

"A week…?" Misty asked, glancing over to Ash, concern on her face "Isn't there a quicker way to get there?"

"Well, I think it's for the best if we avoid public transport Misty" Brock responded "We don't know whether people actually have it out for Ash, and something tells me that it won't be Jessie and James this time". Ash sat there in silence, he didn't know what to make of, speaking to SlowKing seemed like such a wild goose chase, yet something, something told him that it might be a step in the right direction.

"Besides, we can't even think about making a move until Ash has seen this Doctor, it's very possible that whatever causing this is natural and not induced" This caused Ash to shudder, he could just about cope with the idea of someone doing this to him, but the idea that these nightmares were just part of his psyche, that was a bit too much.

The rest of the day went on in a very similar manner, they discussed where they should travel, and a number of possible outcomes, but to Ash none of this really mattered, he was more concerned about that evening, from the day that Misty and Brock had arrived, to the present day Ash's nightmares had been getting worse, and he assumed that tonight was going to be no exception. This scared him, but what scared him most was the damage that he was causing to those around him, Misty had insisted on staying in Ash's room, and without fail she woke him up and tried her best to calm him down during the nightmares, and it was starting to show, the black bags under her eyes and her temper was getting worse with each day.

Ash didn't blame her of course, she was being the best friend ever, he even mentioned it to Brock, who merely shrugged and responded "Misty cares about you in way I don't think I'll ever be able to. But I will ask if she wants to swap rooms." Ash wondered what that meant, did Brock mean that Misty liked him in a way that was more than a friend, or was he just being flippant, either way it didn't matter she had refused the room swap with Brock.

Ash would try and speak to her tonight. Ash and Misty were laying on his bed, just talking about nothing in particular, they had already worked their way through most normal topics of conversation on the second night, nevertheless this had become standard for the pair.

"Well, I suppose we should get to sleep Mist, it's late"

"Yeah, you're probably right, I should probably sleep on the floor, otherwise people are going to start talking" A coy smile crossed her face, Misty couldn't deny that she enjoyed sleeping next to Ash. The redhead began to get up but was quickly pulled back down by Ash, he pulled her in for a hug. "Thank you, Mist." Misty could barely hear him, they were so close, his mouth so close to her neck, she closed her eyes, heart beating at what felt like a million beats per minute

"But I have to ask you, why?" Misty pulled back from him and stared directly into his eyes, she was trying to get a read on the situation; he definitely looked sincerre

"What do you mean, why? I'm doing this because you're Ash, you've been more than willing to give yourself up to save this tiny planet on a number of occasions, maybe you should let someone help you for once" for the second time that week Ash was on the brink of tears. They didn't move like they had planned to.

Pikachu looked up from the end of the bed and coughed, gaining the attention of his trainer

"What is it pal?"

"Pika pika chu pika"

"We were being quiet, we were just talking" The small yellow Pokemon merely stared at the two trainers and smiled "Pika pika"

"What do you mean that it doesn't look like it? haven't you seen people hug before" Ash knew that Pikachu was winding him up. As Ash looked down Misty had fallen asleep

"well I shouldn't move her, we'll be up again in a few hours" and he sighed, it was all well and good Misty telling him to accept help, it didn't make him feel any better. And slowly he also drifted off, his red haired friend still attached to him. Ash's dreams took a lighter tone that night, yes he still woke up in a cold sweat, but he hadn't lived through the pain and darkness again, was this a step in the right direction? As he arose from sleep Ash noticed that something was different, Misty was close to his face, their foreheads touching even. Ash couldn't help but smile as he looked at her face, the morning sunlight made her face glow, confusion set in, why was he so fascinated with Misty's face, that's when he noticed the other strange thing, they were holding hands.

Misty didn't open her eyes immediately as she woke up, the bright morning sun was hurting her eyes even though they were closed, she could feel Ash's breath on her mouth, it sent shivers down her spine; Why was he having this effect on her, she wondered, she could feel his hand in hers, had Ash purposely taken hold of it in the night, or was it a side affect of their sleep. As if Ash had been reading her thoughts his hand moved, Misty's instincts took over, she tightened her grip. Ash continued to look at Misty, she had just stopped him from moving his hand, was she still asleep? No, that was silly Ash thought, of course she was asleep, why would she hold onto his hand?

Misty slowly opened her eyes and looked at Ash, as she looked deep into his dark eyes impulse took over, moving her head slightly she placed a light kiss on Ash's lips. Ash was shocked he couldn't move, Misty's lips were intoxicating, he didn't know what to do.

"Morning" Misty whispered, she flushed bright red "Sorry, I didn't… Umm, yeah"

"It's… It's okay…" Ash didn't know what to say, he felt as though he had been hit by a truck, is this what Brock had meant "Hmm, that was unexpected".

"Yeah" Misty couldn't make sense of her actions, she had always denied having feelings for Ash; so why, why right at this moment would she do something like that? And what must Ash be feeling.

"Oh God" Misty thought "He's going to think that I've only been being nice because of this" the feeling made Misty feel sick, yet the look on Ash's face was still one of bewilderment. "Has it not clicked for him yet? Is he really that dense?".


	4. Light and darkness

Disclaimer- I don't own Pokemon, or any of the characters mentioned.

By the time that Ash and Misty got up to move they had both resolved to seek external advice on what had just happened. Ash had decided that Brock would know what was going on, that seemed like a perfectly reasonable thing to do; Misty knew that she needed another woman's view on the matter, but she couldn't very well talk to Ash's mother about this, the only option seemed to be to speak to Brock, after all he was Ash's best male friend, he'd know what Misty should do. Brock was in for an interesting afternoon.  
Breakfast was on the table as Ash entered the kitchen, his Mom turned to him and informed him that the doctor she had mentioned before was being held up and would be along tomorrow, and that she hoped it would help. She then piled a metric tonne of syrup onto Ash's pancakes, or at least it seemed that way. Ash didn't mind though, for the first time in weeks he felt properly hungry, this morning was proving to be distracting.

Brock piped up "Are you okay Ash? you seem kinda distant, it wasn't a bad night was it?" Brock was concerned about his younger counterpart, ever since the revelation about the nightmares he was conscious that Ash might be in more pain than he showed, today though something was different.

"What…? Yeah I'm good, in fact there's something I need to ask you about." Before turning a bright shade of maroon "I was… Um… Wondering if."

Ash didn't get chance to finish, as just at that moment Misty walked into the kitchen, his entire thought process failed, flushing red again as his pancakes became very important. Brock looked from Ash to Misty, both were a avoiding eye contact and were most certainly, something had definitely happened.

"Okay, what happened?" Brock asked the pair

"Nothing!" Ash and Misty both responded.

"Funny that, because you're both acting awfully strange, if I didn't know you both better I would say that you spent the morning making out" Hah, thought Brock, that's bound to make them talk, they really hate people talking about them as a couple. Their reaction was the complete opposite to what Brock had expected, instead of shouting him down they looked at one another and then straight down at their plates.

"Wait… Wait a minute, did you?" Before Brock got chance to hear a response Misty had gotten up and left, a trail of wind behind her. It was Ash's turn to speak "Umm Brock, could you… ummm… could you speak to her. I think she's too embarrassed to speak to me about it."

"What exactly happened Ash?" Brock understood he had to be sensitive about this, not just because he hated to see his friends upset, but also because this was Ash and Misty, and they were like volcanoes at the best of times when it came to their feelings. Ash proceeded to explain how had woken up and how Misty kissing him had come about, he explained that he really didn't know what to think as it "was Misty, like, actually Misty" and that she was great, but it was a shock to him. And with that he went glossy eyed again and finished his pancakes.

"Yeah, okay Ash I'll try and speak to her." Brock left Ash to his thoughts, and went to find Misty, he suspected that she had taken off down the dirt track outside of the Ketchum residence. It was more than likely, he thought, that she's at that play park we passed on the way here, she had mentioned how much she loved them as a child. And sure enough, there on the swings the Cerulean Gym leader.

"Hey Misty" Brock called out, she looked deep in thought, he didn't want to startle her, she might have her mallet with her. "Can I join you?" motioning towards to empty swing.

"Yeah" Misty looked up at Brock, she half expected Ash to be just off in the distance, was he upset about this morning

"Misty, Ash told me what happened, you didn't do anything wrong."

"What?" Misty snapped from her thoughts "Sorry, I meant, what do you mean I didn't do anything wrong, I've totally screwed up my friendship with Ash!"

"No you haven't" Misty stared at him "You haven't screwed anything up, Ash is just a tad dense when it comes to these things, even his own feelings" Brock couldn't help but chuckle.

"What do you mean, his feelings, do you think Ash likes me like that?"

"Oh please Misty, you and he have been closer than most people for years, even when we were travelling around Sinnoh he couldn't go a few days without bringing you up, and that trend hasn't stopped." Brock could practically hear Misty's thoughts, she seemed to be analyzing every word he had said.

"But that was, as you said, years ago, lots of things have changed since then. Especially with Ash." She added in a hushed tone.

"If you think that what Ash is going through could change the way he feels about you, then maybe you don't know him as well as you think you do" Brock's tone had changed, sympathy flooded his words "why don't you try talking to him about it. Something tells me he quite enjoyed it."

"Thanks Brock, and if I can ever repay the favour, let me know." And she got up and left Brock to his thoughts once more.

"Well, I didn't expect that when I got up this morning". Brock was happy for them, if they could put their pride aside and actually talk about this, they might eventually admit that he had been right.

Ash was back in his room Pikachu by his side. He knew that he needed to speak to Misty about what had happened, but he really didn't know how to go about it, and he felt funny, he was feeling something he hadn't felt for such a long time, it was the same feeling he felt when he had left Misty to go around Hoenn all those years ago. Groaning with the accompanying feeling of sickness Ash sat down on his bed.

"What should I do Pikachu?"

"Pika pika" Ash's first ever Pokemon had the biggest grin, he knew exactly what had happened, due to his heightened senses, he had just chosen not to let it be know at the time.

"Well, yeah, I know I need to talk to her, but how?" Ash didn't have to wait long for his answer, as almost immediately there was a knock at his door.

"Hmmm, Ash, can I come in?" Misty asked from the other side of his door

"Yeah, of course" Ash responded, he could already feel the butterflies in his stomach, he hadn't expected to feel like this.

"I suppose we should… ummm… talk about earlier" Misty started, at that Pikachu got up off of the bed, smirked at Ash and Misty and then left, leaving the duo to sort themselves out.

"Probably" Ash was struggled to get his words out, he was tongue tied "come and sit down" he beckoned Misty to sit beside him, she obliged.

"Ash, I'm sorry if I shocked you earlier" Misty was the first to start "I don't know what overcame me, I wasn't thinking."

"It's okay Misty, I was a tad shocked." Ash couldn't help but think about her lips, they had been like pure sugar "I think we should talk about what this means for us though, I mean, do you like me like that?" Ash rushed out the last few words, whilst he thought he knew the answer, there was still a decent amount of anxiety there. Misty didn't respond straight away, she sat and looked into Ash's eyes, as if searching his soul, was he about to break her heart and tell her the feelings weren't mutual.

"Yes Ash, yes I do, I think… I think I always have, at least for the last few years. I understand if you don't feel the…" Misty didn't get chance to finish as Ash kissed her.

Ash and Misty didn't come down for dinner until much later that evening, they had spent the remainder of the weaving conversation in between kissing sessions. Whilst they couldn't keep their hands off of one another in Ash's bedroom, they both agreed that they wouldn't do anything more serious until they could get some proper alone time, lest someone walked in on them. They both agreed that they would act as though they had simply spent the afternoon speaking about what had happened and about them, and that nothing else had happened. Ash was also concerned about something else, Misty could see this in his eyes.

"What is it Ash? You seem distracted, and not by me" she smiled

"It's just that, what if whoever condemned me with these nightmares decides to use you as another target, I don't think I could live with myself if that happens. And it does happen a lot, just watch any superhero movie." Ash understood how ridiculous it sounded, but it wouldn't be the first time people near him had been caught up in strange and dangerous situations, his mind flicked back to Greenfield.

"Ash" Misty turned serious "That's a bridge we'll cross when we get to it. But for now, let's just enjoy the moment". She planted a light kiss on his cheek and got up "We better go and get some food."

Brock was sat in the kitchen once again as Ash and Misty entered, laughing. He smiled as he saw the young couple, he could tell right away that something was different about their behaviour, for a start off they couldn't stop glancing at one another smiles creeping across their faces. He knew better than to mention it with Delia in the kitchen, and not because of her reaction.

"Ah, there you two are, I was starting to get worried." Delia added "I was about to sent Brock to find you, then again, I don't know if I would want to subject him to that"

"What… what do you mean?" once again Ash flushed bright red "It's simple Hon, you're wearing Misty's lipstick on your face. And I don't think you put it on." Delia smirked and looked at the couple "It's my job to notice these things. Now sit down before your dinner gets cold, and try to keep your hands off one another at the table." Ash looked very abashed as he took his place at the table, Misty was simply glowing like a ruby.

"Well, that's that cat out of the bag I suppose" Pikachu jumped onto the chain beside Ash, and started to eat his dinner that had been prepared by Brock; this seemed to act as a trigger for the rest as they all attacked their food.

Ash sat in his living room, he was face to face with the Doctor he had been expecting since his nightmares were revealed. The man in front of him was a few inches taller than Ash, his hair was greying but still had flecks of black that must have been his natural colour.

"So Ash, I've been told you've been having some awful nightmares, is this right?" compassion filled the older mans voice, he didn't like people suffering, that's the reason he had become a Doctor after all.

"Yes, that's right." Ash was rigid, and completely out of his comfort zone

"Well then Ash, would you tell me when they started please? I want to try and get a good picture of the situation" And so Ash explained that he can't remember exactly why they started other than he lost a day, and could only assume that something must have happened, even when he had asked Pikachu about that day the small mouse simply shook his head.

"Okay, well have you ever been in a stressful or dangerous situation, that you replay on occasions?" Ash couldn't help but laugh, he'd been in many situations like that. The Doctor looked worried

"Ash… I want to try something I'm not really supposed to do, I'm going to ask my Kadabra to put you into a tranced state, just to see if we can find anything more out. Is that okay?"

"Yeah okay, truth be told, I would like to know what's going on as well." So it was set, the Doctor called out his Kadabra and set about to work. The room went dark as Kadabra put Ash and and the Doctor under a powerful hypnotize move, and then using it's strong psychic powers, projected Ash's thoughts into the Doctor's mind. What happened next was more unsettling than either person had expected. Darkness. Darkness was all that the Doctor saw as his Kadabra manipulated Ash's thoughts into a physical form; The Doctor had expected at least some colour, as was normally the case, he had expected the voices of friends, the smell of grass, or even a glimpse of the nightmares, but this absence, the absence scared him. For the first time in his professional career Dr. Vincent Green was stumped, why couldn't he see any of this young boy's thoughts or fears. Was somebody trying to hide whatever was going on? As suddenly as it started, Ash and the Doctor were pulled from their connected state, disorientated and bleary eyed. Ash looked around his surroundings; something didn't feel right, definitely out of place, and then it hit Ash, he was on the floor.

Vincent turned to look at his Pokemon, wondering why they had been pulled from the comatose state, the Pokemon looked at Ash upon the floor and shrugged.

"I guess I must have been active during that trance then Doc."

"What? Umm, yes. I'm afraid Ash that I don't think there's much I can do for you, whatever is causing those nightmares you seem to be having, certainly isn't the doing of your own psyche" This relieved Ash somewhat, he was glad that he wasn't actually going mad, but there was the possibility that someone was doing this too him, and that could be any number of people.

"Well, thanks Doc, at least that's something more than I knew when this started. We're definitely going to have to go and find out why this is happening, aren't we?"

"Yes, I think you are, there isn't much more I do for you really. I'm going to prescribe you some sleeping pills, I suspect that they'll make sleeping easier for you, but I won't promise anything. You have my luck for the adventure it sounds as though you're about to take."


End file.
